It's a small world out there
by Saab08
Summary: Nellie Stromberg is about to fulfill her life-long dream when she is faced with her toughest challenge yet. Blellie/Michellie fic
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

'Nellie Stromberg?'

Nellie stood up and walked towards the guy that called her name.

'Hi'

'Follow me' He said, grinning as he saw the pretty petite girl walking towards him.

_He has a really cute smile. And that dark brown hair of his…_

_Nellie focus! You need this job! Don't get distracted!_

Nellie couldn't afford getting distracted. She really needed this job. Not only was it her dream to become assistant photographer of the Chicago Times, but she also needed it to pay off her student loans and to prove to her parents that all those photography courses were worth it.

She was murmuring words of encouragement to herself while they were walking through a lighted corridor. They had arrived at an office door when the cute guy explained to her:

'Just wait here for a few seconds. Mr. Edwards will tell you to come in when he is ready to start the interview' He then flashed her a smile and said 'Good luck'

'Thanks'

She tried to smile back, but was too occupied and worried about what he just told her.

_Edwards? No, it can't be. Surely not? No, Edwards is a really common name. It won't be him. Don't over think it._

But the words written on the office door only confirmed what she was thinking. As she read the name over and over again, she was seriously considering just leaving. But she couldn't do that. This opportunity was a once in a lifetime opportunity. She couldn't just leave. That would be giving up. She was so lost in her thoughts that she barely heard a deep voice summoning her in.

Even though it's been 5 years, she distinctly remembers his voice. Blake Edwards' voice.


	2. Chapter 2: Just My Luck

Chapter 2

Nellie took a deep breath, hesitantly opened the door and entered the office.

_This can't be happening. Why him out of all people? Just my luck. _

She stepped into the room and ignored all the beautiful black and white photographs hung up on the white walls. She didn't notice the beautiful city view peeking through the window. She only had eyes on the one person she had thought she would never have the misfortune of meeting ever again.

'Edwards' She said, the bitterness clearly audible in her voice.

'Stromberg' He clearly remembered her, his brown eyes showing a flash of recognition. 'Guess it's a small world, huh?' He grinned that insufferable grin of his, flashing his pearly whites in the process.

'Too small. I didn't know you were into photography'

'There's a lot you don't know about me Stromberg. Take a seat.'

Nellie reluctantly sat in a chair, now in front of Blake's desk.

'So, what aspires you to work for our company? I see that you have many ref…'

'Cut the crap, Edwards. There is no point in me taking this interview. You've tried to make my life a living hell all through middle and high school. I don't want to go through the same thing at work. Why won't you just tell me that I'm not going to get the job. Let's just get this over with.'

Blake threw back his head and laughed

'You've become much more confident in -how many years has it been?- five years. I like it. Nah, that would make it way too easy. We wouldn't want to waste any opportunity to have some fun now would we?'

Nellie nearly groaned, bracing herself for the worse. She knew what Blake Edwards was capable of: He could make your life utterly and completely miserable with a click of his fingers, earning him the award for biggest bully in McKinleigh High.

_He's going to make me work for him, isn't he? He knows fully well that this is my dream, and he is going to use it at his own advant-_

'Nellie Stromberg, congratulations! You start work on Monday! I'll make sure that everything will be ready by then!'

She barely stifled a shriek of horror, knowing fully well that she couldn't just give up on her dream. She was now the misfortunate employee of Blake Edwards. Oh how she hated her life.

As Nellie walked down the corridor towards the exit, her thoughts were interrupted by a familiar voice

'So, how did it go?'

She stopped, looked up and recognized the cute guy from earlier.

'Fine. I'm starting work on Monday.' She unsuccessfully tried to hide the animosity from her voice.

'Hey that can't be so bad. You'll get to see more of me.' He grinned 'I'm Michael. Michael Adams.'

'Nellie. But I guess you already now that' She smiled. Maybe her working here won't be so bad after all.


	3. Chapter 3: The first Monday

Chapter 3

On Monday, Nellie entered the building of the Chicago times, trying to find her way through the maze of corridors. She was contemplating asking someone for directions when she bumped into a familiar figure. She looked up to see the victim of her clumsiness, to see no other than Michael.

'Hey'

'Oh hi' She said breathlessly. _How come I've never noticed his eyes? They-_

'Hey. You ok?' He was looking down at her questioningly, bringing her back to reality.

'Um, yeah. Sure.' _Snap out of it Nellie!_

He chuckled and asked

'You look a bit lost. Let me help you. You're going to Edwards' office right?'

She nodded in answer, and he lead her into an elevator and down a few familiar corridors.

'So, are you excited? I heard that Edwards is a great boss.'

Nellie scowled and shook her head.

'If that's what people say.'

Michael threw back his head and laughed.

'What's up with you and Edwards?'

'Is it really that obvious?' She sighed.

'Not really, but your scowl was certainly a huge giveaway.'

She started to smile, but that smile was quickly turned upside down when they stopped at Blake's office door.

'I'll see you later then' Said Michael as he walked away.

'Sure. Thanks for helping me.'

'My pleasure'

He waved back at her as he turned at the end of the corridor.

'Already making new friends?'

Nellie jumped as she heard Blake's voice. While she was staring after Michael, he had opened the door and was now standing in front of her.

'Yup. Not that it's any business of yours.'

'Aw come on Stromberg, we've been friends for ages.'

'That's a broad use of the term 'friends''

Blake chuckled.

'Ok, so maybe we weren't exactly on the best of relations-'

'You think?'

Blake sighed at Nellie's interruption

'But, now that we're going to work together, I've been thinking. I think that we should stop this bickering and be professional. You know, so that we can work at our best.'

Nellie was shocked to hear this from Blake. He seemed oblivious to her state of shock and carried on.

'So I propose that we start by calling each other by our first names.'

'Are you kidding me?' Nellie had now definitely recovered from her state and was now as mad as ever 'you torment me all through High School, and now you expect me to be all over it? Not only that but you also blame this 'bickering' on the both of us? You have some nerve! You want me to just forget everything and forgive you without an proper apology?'

She was positively fuming by now. Blake looked slightly taken aback, obviously not used to her fiery temper. He just remembered her as the girl that lacked all confidence and who was as shy as a mouse. He put up both his hands, attempting to calm her down.

'Whoa Nellie, calm down. I'm sorry, ok? I'm really sorry about what happened in High School. I just want to start from scratch. I don't want you to be angry every day, coming in to work. I just thought that it would make it easier working together, you know?'

She took in a deep breath. She didn't like shouting at people. It made her feel like a bully. And she knew that that was something she never wanted to be.

_Hey, he does deserve it- Shut up brain. He's trying to be nice. Might as well give him a chance. _

'Ok. Let's start all over. This from now on is going to be a professional relationship. Happy?'

'You bet' He smiled. 'thanks Nellie. Ok, so let's get cracking. There's a lot to do today…'

**A.N.: Hey guys :) this is not finished. (just saying) thanks for reading. There is going to be some Michellie and Blellie coming soon (Well I guess there's already been some Michellie) But I'm a hardcore Blellie shipper, so you know... :) ok, bye :) x**


	4. Chapter 4: The Coffee Shop

Chapter 4

At the end of her first day, Nellie was cleaning up her desk, exhausted from her day. She was putting her camera in her bag when she heard a light tap on her office door.

'Come in' she called.

The door opened revealing Michael, grinning

'I just had a chat with Edwards. He mentioned that you were done for the day, so I was wondering if you wanted to go grab a coffee or something before you went home'

Nellie blushed at Michael's offer and looked down at her feet. She tried to get over her initial embarrassment, and looked back up, replying

'Sure. I have time to spare. Where were you thinking of going?'

'I know this place. It's really good. You'll see. Come on'

She quickly packed up her bag and slung it over her shoulder, following Michael out of her small office.

'So where are you taking me?' Nellie asked as they were outside.

'You'll see when we get there.' He led her down different roads, going around many bends and curbs.

'How do I know you're not taking me to some dark alley where you're going to murder me? I mean, we're practically strangers.' She joked.

Michael chuckled at her suggestion.

'Well you never know. Like you said, we're practically strangers' he teased back. He stopped in front of a small coffee shop. Even though it was very old, and the paint was slowly peeling off in some places, the shop had a certain appeal that Nellie couldn't deny. They were flowers on every windowsill that made her forget that they were in the middle of a city.

'This is amazing' She gasped, clearly showing her awe in her voice.

'I knew you'd like it' Michael smiled 'Come on, it's even better in the inside.'

He was right. As Nellie entered the coffee shop, she was amazed by the warmth and comfort it drew out. There were tables and chairs placed all over the store, only a few of them occupied. The shop smelt of warm coffee and cinnamon.

Michael led her towards a corner that was half-hidden from the entrance.

'So how do find it?' He grinned, already knowing that her answer would be a positive one.

'Oh my God, Michael! This is amazing! How did you find this place?'

'My father used to bring me here when I was a kid. I just love it here.'

'I understand why.' Nellie was still in a state of admiration.

They were talking about anything and everything when a waitress approached them. She was blonde and had big beautiful eyes.

'Hey Michael' She greeted 'How ya doin'? And who is this with you?' She had distinctive southern drawl that Nellie recognized.

'Shanna?'

'Oh my goodness, Nellie, is that you?' The Southern Belle immediately hugged Nellie in a tight embrace. 'What are you doing here in Chicago?'

'I could ask you the same thing, I thought you were at NYU?'

'Nah, I realized law wasn't for me. I'm trying my luck with singing.'

Nellie knew Shanna Hayes from way back. Both their fathers worked in the same field and became good friends, so Shanna and Nellie hung out together since they were toddlers. They went to elementary together, but then Shanna's parents decided to put Shanna in a private Catholic school. Even though they had stayed close, they slowly lost contact after High School.

Nellie was very happy to find her long lost friend again and hugged her once again.

'So, Nell, what are you doing here?'

'I got a job as assistant photographer at the Chicago Times.'

Shanna shrieked in delight. She knew that it had been Nellie's dream to be a photographer for a major newspaper since she was small.

'I knew you could do it!' She exclaimed. 'So, bound to be head photographer any time soon?' she inquired.

'I don't think that's going to happen.' Nellie replied dryly 'You'll never guess who my boss is.'

'Who?'

'Blake Edwards.' Nellie watched Shanna's mouth form into a little 'o' of surprise with amusment.

'No. Him? I thought-'

'Wait, wait hold up.' Michael, who had quietly been sitting in his corner, finally piped up 'How come you know Edwards?'

'We used to hang out with him a lot when we were kids.' Shanna replied. 'When I left for St. Magdalene's during middle school, Nellie became friends with Blake. The three of us were very close. We used to call ourselves the Three Musketeers.' She smiled with nostalgia.

'But then High School came around, he joined the football team, became a jerk, and started bullying me. The end.' Nellie finished, the bitterness distinctive in her words.

Shanna Piped up. 'You forgot to mention that you had the biggest crush on him.'

Nellie just rolled her eyes. 'That was in middle school. In High School I just hated his guts.'

Michael was just sitting there, astounded by Nellie and Shanna's story. He had heard so many of his work colleagues say that Blake was such a great and kind guy.

Nellie interrupted his thoughts by saying 'Anyways, he asked me if we could start from scratch and forget everything.'

'I hope you said no.' Shanna replied.

'I actually said yes. I won't let Edwards get in the way of my dream, so I figured we could at least work well together.'

'I guess.' Said Shanna.

'Let's talk about something else. I don't really feel like talking about work when we have so much to catch up on.' Nellie said, drawing the conversation towards something a bit more positive.

**A.N.: Thanks so much for the reviews :) If you have any suggestions, please post them in the reviews. **


	5. Chapter 5: New Beginnings

Chapter 5

Nellie and Michael talked some more over coffee Shanna had brought them after the three of them had caught up. They had been talking a while when Shanna joined them. There were hardly any customers left, so she didn't have much to do. The three of them talked for about a half and hour more before Michael left saying that it was getting late and that he needed to get back to his apartment.

'I had a great time.' He said, kissing Nellie's cheek and waving Shanna goodbye.

As he left, Shanna whistled appreciatively.

'That's one fine man you've chosen yourself there.'

Nellie blushed a crimson red.

'I didn't choose him.'

'Well I don't care if you did or if you didn't, because he is great guy. He always comes here and leaves a very generous tip. Not that that's the most important. He's also really nice with other people, getting to know all the customers. You're one lucky girl.'

'We're just friends.' Nellie was so embarrassed she thought she was going to turn purple.

'Nellie, he wasn't looking at you the way friends do.'

'Shanna…please can we just change conversation? Anyways it's getting late. I should get going.'

'Where are you staying? I could give you a lift.'

'Don't worry, I'm staying at a little hotel nearby. I'm still apartment hunting, but everything is so expensive. Anyways thanks for the coffee. It was so nice seeing you again' She stood up and moved towards Shanna to give her a hug. Shanna hugged her back before saying 'Hey, you think that now we found each other again that I'm just going to let you go? That is in no way going to happen. Now that we've got each other again, I'm not letting you out of my sight! We'll be the three Musketeers again, but you know, minus Blake. You can crash at my place!'

'What?' Nellie was confused by the flurry of words that had just escaped Shanna's mouth.

'My roommate left for Alaska, so I've got a room. I don't know what she's planning to do there. Probably something like majoring in polar bears or something. But anyways come on over tomorrow and bring all of your stuff. We'll have you moved in before the end of the weekend!'

'Oh my god Shanna! Thank you so much! You just saved me from so much trouble.'

She hugged her friend once more.

'Hey, what are friends for?'

* * *

When she went back to work on Monday, she was happy. She had a stable job and now, an apartment that she was sharing with her best friend. She had a smile plastered on her face as she knocked on Blake's office door to tell him that Keith from Sports wanted him to take some pictures for a feature he was doing.

'Come in'

She entered the office and saw him sitting on his chair. He was smiling, but it was obviously forced. He looked troubled, his hair messed up as if he had run his hand through it many times.

'Hey. You ok?' She asked him, her smile instantly vanishing upon seeing his state.

'Hey. Yeah, everything is going fine. Don't worry about it.'

She wanted to question him so more about it, but something about his forlorn expression told her to drop it.

'Sure. I just came to tell you that Keith-'

'She broke up with me.' He interrupted her, running his hand through his already messed up hair.

'Huh?' She said intelligently. _Oh way to go Nellie. _

'My girlfriend. She broke up with me. Just now. On the phone.'

'Ouch.' She didn't know what else to say.

'I know right? We've been going out for 4 years now and she breaks up with me on the phone. Couldn't even do it to my face.'

He looked so miserable, sitting in his chair. He looked on the verge of tears. Nellie couldn't stop herself: she walked towards him, wrapped her arms around him, and gave him a hug. She was as surprised by what she had done as he was. She moved back and looked into his eyes.

'Look, don't beat yourself up because of it. She obviously wasn't worth it if she broke up with you on the phone. And you know, you're a great, smart, successful, and, a, um,' she blushed, looking away 'good-looking male that won't have any problem finding a new girl that is way better than the one who just left you.'

He was looking at her, and seemed to be feeling a bit better after her encouraging words.

'Thanks Nellie. You're right, I shouldn't worry about it. I've got a great job and friends who love me.' He smiled.

'Ok. So I'll leave you to it. Take a little break. If anybody calls I'll tell them that you're busy and I'll just send you an e-mail about Keith's feature and all the details.' She was about to leave his office, when he called after her.

'You think I'm good looking.' She turned around and saw the cockiest grin on his face.

'Don't flatter yourself too much Edwards.' She said, hearing him chuckle as she exited his office and walked towards her desk. She was still astounded by what she had done. She was being friendly with Blake Edwards! But she didn't worry too much about it, because all that she could think about were those beautiful brown eyes of his.

**A.N.: Hey guys :) Thanks for the reviews! Sorry for the late update. If you have any ideas or prompts just let me know :) **


	6. Chapter 6: Memories

Chapter 6

**Nellie's P.O.V.:**

The next few days went by quickly, and by Thursday Nellie was exhausted. Sure, she was doing what she loved, but it was still tiring and took up a lot of her spare time. She was glad that her after work coffee breaks with Michael were becoming a regular occurrence, but tonight they were going on a proper date. She smiled, putting on her dangly earrings as she remembered how Michael asked her out.

_They were leaving the coffee shop on Tuesday, and were about to part ways to go back home, when Michael cleared his throat._

_'Are you free on Thursday?'_

_Nellie blushed, knowing where this was going to go._

_'Sure. But why Thursday?'_

_Michael grinned, obviously happy that she accepted his offer._

_'Because I know you and Shanna are going to the movies. So you finish at 6:30 right?' When Nellie nodded, he continued 'Ok, so how about I come and get you at quarter to, and we'll go directly to the restaurant?'_

_'That sounds great. Where are we going?'_

_'I'm not going to tell you.' He teased. 'So it's a date. I'll see you later.'_

_'See you later.' She said as he kissed her cheek and walked away. _

She looked at herself in the mirror of the office lavatories as she was putting some lip-gloss on. She was wearing some black skinny jeans with her favorite silk top. She didn't want to appear over dressed. As she go out of the lavatory, she bumped into Blake, who was leaving. He looked down at her, taking in her outfit.

'Someone is going to have a fun time tonight.' He said, grinning.

'I'm going out on a date.' She said excitedly. She was looking forwards to it, since she hadn't gone out with a guy for a long time.

Blake looked surprised, and his grin changed into a tight smile.

'With that Michael guy that you've been hanging out with?' Nellie was surprised with the amount of animosity that appeared in his voice. _Oh well, maybe it just reminded him of his break up._

'Yeah. He's a great guy. I should get going, he's probably waiting for me. See you tomorrow.' She smiled and walked away.

**Blake P.O.V.:**

Blake watched her walk away. He could feel the anger boiling inside of him, and he could feel his jealousy rising. _'He's a great guy' _Oh, how he wished that he were the one going out on date with her. He was surprised by all the emotions he was feeling. He still couldn't believe that he still had feelings for her, after all these years. Sure, when he recognized her, walking into his office, he instantly felt some kind of warmth inside of him, sweeping across his body, but at the time he had just blamed it on the hot weather. It's just that she had always been a part of his life, and even when he was bullying her, he saw her every day. He spent 5 years without her, and now that she was back into his life, it was as if a missing part of him had come back.

_'Hey, I'm Nellie.' 12-year old Blake looked up from his desk and saw a small dark-haired girl standing in front of him. She had beautiful brown eyes, and she had amazing long shiny hair. He realized he had been staring at her for too long and blushed. He knew that he must've looked ridiculous._

_'Hi, I'm Blake.' At that age, Blake was really shy. He got constantly picked on because he looked so weak and he felt very self-conscious about it, and couldn't understand why such a pretty girl like Nellie was talking to him. _

_'Do you want to be friends? I don't know anybody here and you seem nice.'_

_That's what he liked about Nellie: she didn't judge people by their appearances. For her, the most important was the inside. From that day on they had become the best of friends, and every day that he spent with her, he fell for her a little bit more. But all good things have to end at some point. _

High School. Blake sighed. He had walked out of the building and was now walking towards his car. He took out his car keys out of his pockets and unlocked the vehicle.

As he took a seat in his black BMW, he sighed once more. He had been such a jerk to her, and he regretted every single moment.

_Blake, standing in front of his high school, on the first day of being a freshman. He had now grown and was nearly taller than most of his peers, had started to work out regularly, and was now part of the JV football team. He was excited to spend another four years with his best friend Nellie, and promised to himself that he wouldn't let him becoming a jock ruin their friendship, and that this year was going to be the year when he would confess his true feelings to her. But that was not going to happen._

_He had been walking down the hallway with Nellie, talking about how their day had been, before they had to separate to go to their after school activities: Glee club for her and Football practice for him. He waved her goodbye and joined his teammates who were waiting for him further ahead. _

_'Why do you hang out with her? She's part of that glee club. Those glee kids are all freaks.' Blake had gotten used to his friends criticizing his and Nellie's friendship. _

_Blake replied, rolling his eyes 'So? We've been friends forever'_

_The biggest and most menacing out of the jocks, Karofsky, cornered him, surrounded by Blake's so called 'friends'._

_'Look Edwards, we've tried to tell you nicely, but this can't go on any longer, and we've decided that we can't have one of our guys hang out with a glee loser. It would just ruin our rep, and we don't want any of that. I hope you understand.' He said, menacingly. Blake nodded, scared out of his wits. He knew that Karofsky was the biggest bully out of all the bullies in the school, and that if he didn't do as he was told, he was going to suffer throughout the rest of High School. He had thought that now that he was part of the 'it' crowd that the bullying would stop, but he couldn't have been any further from the truth. He didn't want to end up being the small, weak Blake all over again. He wanted to be the confident Blake, the jock that everybody would look up to. He didn't want to go through middle school all over again. _

_So the next day, he walked up to Nellie, slushy in hand, and doused her with the ice cold drink. She gasped from the cold and looked up at him with her brown eyes filled with hurt and confusion. The way she was looking at him broke his heart. He wanted to tell her that he was sorry, that he didn't mean it, but all of the football team was watching the scene unravel, so he looked her in the eyes, trying to mentally tell her how sorry he was, and walked off. From that day on, he kept bullying not only her, but also other innocent kids, out of fear that he would get bullied himself. Every slushy he threw at her was like a kick in the gut. He knew that he was hurting her. She was suffering what he had suffered. She was being taunted and she was aching. That year was the year she cut her hair. _

A car horn snapped him out of his reverie, and he focused his thoughts back on the road, realizing that he had missed the green light, and had caused the people in the cars behind him to grow significantly impatient. As he drove on when the light turned back to green, he remembered once more how much of a jerk he had been, and how many slushies he had thrown in her face. She hadn't deserved it, and he regretted every single ounce of pain he had caused her. He remembered how she came into school one day, her beautiful long hair that he loved so, gone, replaced with a short haircut that framed her sweet face. He knew why she did it. He had always told her that he loved her long hair, how he had told her never to cut it. That day he knew how much she had been aching and how he had damaged her. That day was when he realized that he had to stop, but he couldn't, because he was already in too deep. 'I'm so sorry Nellie.' He whispered, as he drove on in the dark and cold night.

**A.N.: I've changed the P.O.V. so I could put some flash backs in, and so that you could see both sides of the story. I'm sorry if there are any mistakes. I'm really tired and I should probably go to sleep now. Once again, thanks for the reviews :) **


	7. Chapter 7: As long as there's pasta

Chapter 7

'So, what are you going to take?'

Nellie looked up from her menu, and thought a bit before answering.

'I think I'm just going to take some pasta.'

She knew that there had been much nicer things to choose from, but when the waiter had given her the menu, she had gasped upon seeing the prices. She didn't know how Michael could afford such a fancy restaurant. But albeit the cost of the restaurant, the night so far was going great. When he had met her at her desk, he had first and foremost complimented her on her appearance, making her blush, before offering her his arm and leading her towards his car. He had been the perfect gentleman, and she had felt very flattered. She didn't recognise the restaurant when they walked towards it after Michael had parked his car, but she wasn't surprised when they entered the restaurant and saw the fancy decor: she could never have afforded to eat in such a place. The maitre d' had led them towards a round table for two next to a window, before giving them their menus.

To be honest, she wasn't used to such formal outings and felt very uncomfortable.

'You don't have to choose the cheapest thing on the menu.' Michael chuckled 'It's ok, take whatever you want, I don't mind.'

'No, don't worry. I like pasta.' She smiled. She wasn't lying, she loved pasta. It always reminded her of the day when Shanna, who at the time had decided she wanted to become a chef, decided she would make a fancy dinner for her and Blake, without the assistance of her parents. But it failed miserably, and when Shanna's mum saw the mess in the kitchen, she made them clean it up, and cooked them pasta. Mrs Hayes always did the best pasta, and from then on, when her and Blake went to Shanna's house, they would always eat pasta.

'Hey you ok?' Nellie quickly snapped out of her reverie.

'Yeah. I was just thinking of something.' Why was she thinking of that? She had noticed that recently she had been remembering more and more things from the time of 'The Three Musketeers'. Probably because Blake and Shanna were back in her life. She quickly dismissed the thought, and talked with Michael.

They were in the middle of talking about the how unreliable the coffee machine in the staff room was when the waiter came and took their orders. Nellie left Michael to it and looked out of the window to distract herself. From the window she could see the road they had taken to come here, and on that road, she saw a car that looked familiar disturbing traffic, not driving as the lights turned green. She was sure she had seen that car before.

'Hey, isn't that Edwards' car?' Michael had finished talking to the waiter and was now looking in the general direction of Nellie's gaze. 'Something must be bugging him. He's been looking down lately, I wonder what it is.'

'His girlfriend dumped him.' The words had flown out her mouth before she could stop them. She couldn't believe she had just said that. She wasn't supposed to tell anyone. She remembered how explicitly he had told her not to tell anyone from work, because he knew how quickly the word would spread around. She had wondered why he was so bothered about the people in the office finding out he was single, but had decided not to bug him about it.

Michael chuckled at Nellie's shocked expression before replying 'Don't worry, I won't tell anyone. But I'm sure he'll find a new girl in no time. All the single girls at work have been pining for him since he entered the building. Has he always been such a hearthrob?'

Now she knew why Blake had forbidden her to tell anyone. She smiled at the thought of professional office women throwing themselves at him before answering Michael's question.

'Well, when I first met him, he was this really small, shy, weedy guy with glasses. That's why I went up to him, and why we became friends at first. He was the sweetest. He had such a kind heart, he didn't see the bad in anyone. We became best friends. But then, in when we were 13, He suddenly had this growth spurt. In only a couple of months, he had gone from the smallest guy in the class to a beanstalk. And then, he got contacts, because his family likes to cycle a lot, as they were more practical, and then he slowly started to wear them all the time. So by the end of that year, He pretty much looked like any other dorky 13 year old, with a wacky hairstyle. That was already a bit of a strange transition for me and Shanna, because now, some girls had started noticing him, so they would always come up to us and ask if they could hang out, just so that they got to see Blake. But then it got worse: during that summer, Blake's grandparents invited him to come to visit them in Texas. It was our first summer apart since we met, and it felt really strange. But it got even stranger when he came back, I didn't even recognise him. Because his grandfather had been an army man, he deemed that Blake was not fit enough to be his grandson. So he put Blake on this fitness regimen the whole of summer. And to top it off, his grandma gave his hair a trim.' She sighed before continuing. 'So he came back, looking like a guy fit for an Armani shoot. When school started again, all the girls flocked towards him, but he ignored them, and claimed that Shanna and I were the only girls for him. Even though outside he was a new, updated version of Blake, on the inside, he was still the sweet-natured guy I met when we were 11. But then... then there was High School. You know the rest.'

She hadn't expected to tell him that much. She hadn't told this to anyone other than Shanna before. Memories of the three of them were flashing through her mind. They were trampolining, trying to see who could do the most tricks...Blake falling into a poisoned ivy bush when they went camping, and Shanna and her just standing there, looking at him and laughing...The multiples pranks her and Blake played on Shanna, because she got so easily scared...That day when they went to the lake near her house and came back home with their clothes completly drenched...Their secret hideout in Blake's treehouse where they spent hours readind, or just simply talking.

And then, she felt Michael's hand squeezing hers as the tears started streaming down her face, trying to comfort her.

**A.N.: Ok, so I just wanted to show the transition from nice Blake to jerk Blake. Hope you like it :) Also Thank you so much for reading this! i have over a 1,000 views :D it maybe not much to you, but to me thats like , a whole village! And thank you so much for the reviews :D tell me what you think :) oh and I'm sorry if I got the ages/american school system stuff wrong. :D**


	8. Chapter 8: Bucket List

Chapter 8

Nellie was unpacking her belongings on Friday morning, getting ready for another day's work. She was rearranging the papers on her desk while thinking about how last night went. Apart from her little outburst, everything else went fine. She had eaten her pasta, and then Michael had brought her back to the apartment that she was sharing with Shanna, and had even kissed her. The events flew around in her head as she tried to remember the kiss.

_They stopped in front of her building, awkwardly standing, trying to say goodnight. _

_'Well, this is me.' Nellie said, in an attempt to break the uneasy silence 'Thanks so much for tonight, and I'm sorry that I got all emotional, I'm not normally like that.'_

_'Don't worry about it, it's not like you've been excusing yourself for the whole of the car ride.' he teased, before continuing 'I had a great time too.'_

_She felt him moving towards her, and she kept her eyes on her shoes, knowing what would happen if she'd lift her chin up. But what if she wanted to be kissed by him, what if she wanted to feel needed again? So she took her gaze off her shoes and looked into his dark eyes. Their lips met, and, well, she didn't know what to expect, but it was just so...empty. Sure, it was nice, kissing is always nice, but she thought it would be more like something out of those romance novels Shanna always reads, with fireworks all over the place. _

_She pulled away after a few seconds and said a quick goodbye before hurrying into the building. _

She pondered a few minutes about it as she checked her e-mails. _Maybe those romance novels are just a load of __bullcrap? Maybe all kisses were supposed to be -what was the word she had used?- empty?_

Nellie had kissed other guys, but those kisses were just drunken college kisses, or simply high school 'spin the bottle' kisses. She had never kissed a guy she might have a potential relationship with. She had wanted to ask Shanna about it, but she was already asleep by the time she had come home.

'So, how was your date?'

Nellie looked up and met Blake's brown eyes. He had somehow managed to sneak up to her desk without her noticing.

'Fine, thanks.' She answered awkwardly, the kiss from last night once more back in her thoughts. _I wonder what it __would be like to kiss Blake. _She blushed, trying to avert her gaze from his lips, and tried her best to change the topic. 'Did you feel okay last night? Because we saw you at the stop lights, and you seemed really distracted.'

It was his turn to blush, remembering what he was thinking about. 'It was nothing. Anyways, you know that thing you sent me about Keith's article? Turns out it's a pretty big thing, and it requires us to go to Arizona.'

'Us?' Nellie shot him a confused look.

'Well yeah. We need a pretty big set of photos, and I certainly won't be able to do all that work by myself.' He shrugged, as if it were enough of an explanation.

'But surely there's other people from the department that could help you? I mean, I need to stay here to take care of other stuff.'

'Are you kidding me?' He chuckled before continuing 'Look, I'm sure Andrew could take care of things while were gone.' Nellie scoffed at the suggestion: Andrew took pictures for the wedding column, and he was probably the least responsible out of all the staff in the photography department. 'Ok, maybe not Andrew, but that's beside the point. Are you seriously trying to get out of a cost free two-day vacation in Arizona?'

'it's not really going to be a vacation if we're going to spend the whole day taking pictures, is it.'

'We're going there on Thursday next week and the event only starts Friday evening. We'll have half a day of free time. And if I remember well, taking pictures of the Grand Canyon is on your bucket list, right? Look, I'll leave you to think about it. I need your answer by Sunday night at the latest, ok?' He grinned a knowing smile before walking back into his office.

She stared at him in shock. She couldn't believe he still remembered that.

* * *

Nellie and Shanna were sitting on their couch, eating some leftover pizza, watching a romcom that they had rented.

'So, are you going to go to Arizona or not?' Shanna questioned. Nellie had just informed her about Blake's offer, and she still didn't know whether she should or shouldn't go. Nellie picked a piece of pepperoni pizza before answering.

'Dunno. I mean, Arizona is amazing and I'll be able to see the Grand Canyon, but it's going to be with Blake, and even though we're friends again, I can't help but think that it's just going to be awkward between us. What are we going to talk about? Plus' She smiled happily as she peeled a pepperoni off her pizza 'Michael asked me out on another date, but I'll miss it if I go to Arizona.'

Shanna watched Nellie pop the slice of pepperoni into her mouth as she thought about what Nellie had just said.

'I think it's great that he asked you out again, but you know that you can just reschedule that. He's just going to take you to some other fancy restaurant where you won't feel at ease.' Shanna shook her head at Nellie 'Don't make that face. We've been best friends forever, Nellie Stromberg, and if there is one thing that I know about you it's that you don't feel comfortable in posh restaurants. It makes you self-conscious. Granted, Michael is cute, but you'll be able to see his gorgeous face again after the trip. On the other hand, you get to go on a trip with another gorgeous man- don't deny it, you know it's true - and you get to not only see, but also take pictures of the Grand Canyon. It's a once in a lifetime opportunity. You get to go to the Copper State! You get to cross off another thing on your bucket list! That flight ticket to Phoenix is not going to be available again anytime soon.'

Nellie sighed, knowing fully well that Shanna was absolutely right, and that she would be stupid not to go. She grumbled, picking up the last piece of pizza, cursing her misfortune.

* * *

'Edwards'

'Hey, it's me. I'm coming to Arizona. With you.' She muttered down the phone, as she watched Shanna give her a thumbs up upon hearing her decision.

'That's great!'

'Yeah, that's all I wanted to say. I'm sorry I disturbed you. Good Night.'

She was about to hang up when she heard him shout down the phone.

'Wait!'

'What?' She sighed.

'Don't forget to bring your bikini.' He said, the mischief audible in his voice. And with that, he hung up.

Nellie groaned, already regretting her decision.

**A.N.: Heyy :) sorry for the late update. Also, I think I got some tenses mixed up. I tried to fix them, but there might still be some mistakes. ** **Thank you so much for all the reviews :D **


	9. Chapter 9: Planes

Chapter 9

'Passport?'

'Check'

'Ticket?'

'Check'

'Camera?'

Nellie rolled her eyes.

'Shanna, of course I've got my camera. I never leave the house without it.'

'You never know!' She replied defensively. 'Anyway, it looks like you've got everything. Come on, let's get your ass downstairs. Blake should be here any minute now.'

Nellie rolled her eyes once more. Shanna could be such a mother hen sometimes. She picked up her duffel bag and followed Shanna down the stairs.

As Shanna had predicted, Blake was stationed in front of their building, drumming his fingers against his steering wheel. As he saw them approaching, he got out to help Nellie with her belongings.

'Hey!' He greeted them. He took Nellie's bag before turning to Shanna, 'Nice to meet you, I'm- Shanna?' He hadn't recognized her from afar, and nearly stumbled by surprise.

Nellie and Shanna laughed as they watched Blake.

'Hey Blake,' Shanna smiled. 'Me and Nellie are roomies now.'

'You didn't tell me.' Blake turned to Nellie.

'Well, you didn't ask.' Nellie retorted, still laughing at Blake's flabbergasted expression.

Blake ran his fingers through his hair. 'This is so weird.' He sighed.

'Tell me about it.' Shanna said. 'I see Nellie walk into the café I work in, and then, to add on to the shock, she tells me that you're her boss.'

'How long has it been since the three of us have been together?' Wondered Nellie.

They all paused, trying to remember.

'I think it was at Blake's back to school party in freshman year.' Nellie said, instantly regretting her previous question.

There was a silence as they all remembered the eventful night.

_'You're sure about this? Shanna questioned Nellie as they entered Blake's house where the party was already in full swing. _

_'Shanna, don't worry about it.' Nellie said reassuringly. 'Blake's our friend, and if any of his jock friends annoy us, he'll help us.'_

_ Shanna shot her an incredulous look. Nellie rolled her eyes, knowing fully well what her best friend was thinking about. 'Look, Blake couldn't have stopped that from happening. It's some ritual thing they have for all the people that join the glee club.'_

_Nellie had been slushied at the beginning of the week, and even though she kept insisting that a few slushies wouldn't get in between her and Blake's friendship, Shanna couldn't stop herself from thinking that with Blake's jock status and Nellie joining the Glee Club, their friendship was bound to suffer sometime soon. _

_Shanna quickly dismissed the thought as the searched for Blake. They found him in the kitchen, chatting with some of his friends, being the ideal host, with a drink in hand. He interrupted his conversation as he noticed them entering the small kitchen, turning around to properly greet them. _

_'How are my favourite girls?' He asked. He had obviously already been drinking, the smell of alcohol wafting from him as he hugged each of them in turn. Shanna sighed as she saw a blushing Nellie step out of his arms. Her crush on Blake had only increased over the summer, and Shanna was genuinely worried for her, scared that she was going to get hurt._

_Shanna and Nellie spent the rest of the party sitting outside, near the pool, gingerly holding their drinks, too scared to initiate conversation with anybody. Blake had left them to drink some more, joining in with everybody else. They were talking about leaving when a burly jock approached them, an evil grin plastered on his face. _

_'Look at what we have a here.' He chuckled mischievously. 'Aren't you the new glee freak? And that must be one of your loser friends. What are you even doing here?'_

_'Blake…he…he invited us.' Nellie stammered, the fear apparent in her voice. _

_He laughed before saying 'As if. Blake would never invite losers like you.' _

_'We're his best friends.' Interjected Shanna, her temper rising. She wasn't going to let this brute bully Nellie around._

_'Blake Edwards? He doesn't have time for freaks like you. Now leave or else. We don't want losers like you here.' He said menacingly. _

_'Or else what?' Shanna stood up, getting angrier by the second. 'We're not going to leave just because some jerk told us to.' Nellie tried to stop her, but it was already too late. _

_'What did you call me?' He took a step forward, scaring Shanna out of her wits He picked her up, walked towards the pool, and threw her in. He walked back to where Nellie was crouching, where she was trying her best to hide, but he did the same and picked her up and threw her in, making her join Shanna in the ice-cold pool, surrounded by people laughing at them and mocking them. _

_As they walked through the house towards the front door in order to leave, drenched to the core, and their carefully chosen outfits ruined, they were stopped by Blake. He was still drunk, but he seemed to be sober enough to realize what had happened. _

_'Guys, I am so sorry. It was just a joke.' _

_'It's ok, don't worry-' Nellie started, before Shanna interrupted her. _

_'No it's not.' She said to Nellie, before turning to Blake. 'Well I'm not laughing. I'm freezing, and I'm probably going to catch a cold. This is also my favourite dress.' She gestured at her ruined piece of clothing. _

_'It's just a dress. You can just-' Shanna slapped him across his face, stopping him from finishing his sentence. Nellie and Blake stared at her in shock, Blake touching his stinging cheek. _

_'You've turned into such a jerk, Blake. I don't know what happened. You've finally gotten the popularity status you've always craved, but I guess it came with a price.' _

_And with that, she walked out, tugging Nellie behind her. _

There was an awkward silence.

Blake cleared his throat. 'Well I think we should get going.'

* * *

Planes. Even the word sent shudders down her spine. She thought she had gotten over her phobia of planes, after flying in them multiple times to and fro between home and college, but as she entered the flying vehicle, she felt the fear she had thought she had quenched rising in her. As she sat down in her seat, she tried her best to distract herself, but that was near impossible since she was sitting in a window seat, and she had a clear view of the runway they were going to take off on.

'Ladies and gentlemen, would you please fasten your seatbelts. We are preparing for take off.'

Nellie gulped and tried her best to fasten her seat belt with her shaking hands.

_'Would Nellie Stromberg please make her way to the principal's office?' _

_Nellie looked up from her English textbook as she heard her name through the intercom. She turned to her neighbor, Blake, who just shrugged at her. _

_'Don't worry about it. I'm sure it's just because of your perfect grades or whatever.'_

_She laughed softly, knowing fully well that Blake was jealous of her near-perfect grades. He smiled reassuringly as she stood up to go to the office. _

_She knocked on Principal Figgins' door and entered, She gasped as she saw her parents sitting at her principal's desk, tears flowing down their cheeks. Panic rose in her as she tried to comprehend the situation. _

_'What happened? What's going on? Why are you crying?' She had never seen her parents cry before. _

_'Nellie, please take a seat.' Said Principal Figgins, gesturing towards a spare seat next to where her parents were sitting. _

_Nellie sat down, looking at her parents questioningly. Her mother spoke, and through her many hiccups and tears, Nellie could just about make out the fateful words. 'It's Jamie… her plane… it…it crashed…Jamie…she's…she's dead.'_

'Nellie… Nellie, are you ok? Nellie, look at me.'

Nellie opened her eyes, to see Blake shaking her by the shoulders, his eyes clouded by worry. She looked around, and realized that she must've fainted.

'You're as white as a sheet! What's wrong?' He searched her eyes, trying to find an answer to his question, when he suddenly connected the dots. 'Oh my God Nellie, I am sorry! I should've known' His voice shook from worry. 'We should switch seats. Come on.'

He unfastened his seatbelt, oblivious to the stewardess' protests, stood up, and picked Nellie up, putting her in his seat, and sat down, closing the window.

'Feeling better?'

Nellie nodded. She was surprised by how worried Blake had been, as if he was genuinely concerned.

The rest of the flight went by much better, Blake taking care of her. He held her hand during take off, muttering reassuring words in her ear, and during the whole time they were in the air, he constantly did his best to distract her, talking to her relentlessly and cracking jokes, trying his best to make her feel better. Nellie smiled; it was as if the old Blake was back.

**A.N.: Hi guys :D this story has hit 2,000 views! Thank you so much :) Also, I would like to ask you a favour: Since I'm not from the US, I was wondering, could you maybe tell me what kind of sporty events tend to happen in Arizona? I tried to google it, but I couldn't find much, and I need something for the story :) Thanks. And thank you so much for the reviews :D **


	10. Chapter 10: The Grand Canyon

Chapter 10

'Wow.'

Nellie was breath taken. Here she was, standing on the edge of Grand Canyon, looking down on the Colorado River. The river was slithering in and through the path that it made thousands of years ago, glinting from reflecting the sunlight, moving through the gorge. And the gorge. She couldn't believe that after all of these years she spent wishing that she could just see a tiny glimpse of the beautiful orange sandy rocks and cliffs, she was now standing there, taking in all the beauty.

'This is amazing.' Nellie sighed happily.

'I know right? It says here that its 277 miles long and 18 miles wide.' Blake looked up from the guide that he picked up at the entry of the park, amazement written all over his face.

'I know. And it's also 6, 000 feet deep.'

Blake rolled his eyes 'Trust you to know all the digits by heart. You've been obsessing over this place for I don't know how long.'

He was right. Ever since she had learnt about the Grand Canyon in Geography in 4th Grade, she had been completely hooked. She had memorized everything that she could find about it, from the Indian tribes that had lived there to the different ways one could explore the Canyon, only hoping that one day she would be standing where she was standing at this instant.

'How long do we have.' She questioned, looking away from the amazing sight that was laid out in front of her to Blake.

Blake looked at his watch before answering. 'It's twelve o'clock right now. I say we spend another hour here, and then we get back to the hotel, and get ready for the football thing. Sound good to you?'

'Sure.' She muttered, sad that they couldn't spend any more time exploring and taking pictures.

'Come on, no need for that sad face.' He said, noticing her expression. 'Let's eat now, so you can spend the rest of the hour taking as many pictures as you like.'

So they sat side-by-side, leaning on some rocks as they ate their sandwiches, enjoying the view extended in front of them.

'I understand why you put this on your bucket list. It's one of the most impressive things I have ever seen in my life.' Blake said, before chewing off another bite of his sandwich.

Nellie grinned at him before saying. 'One more thing I can strike out on my list. Do you still have yours?'

He grinned back. 'Of course I do. I've nearly crossed off everything.'

She sat up and looked at him in surprise 'That's not possible!' She exclaimed 'you had some of the most ridiculous and unimaginable things on that list! There is no way that you've done even half.'

'Well you're the one to talk.' He laughed 'you had ''marry one of the Backstreet boys'' on your list.'

Nellie blushed a deep shade of red. 'I was going through a phase, ok? And anyways, it's still possible, since one of them is still single. Unlike ''get bitten by a spider and become a superhero''.'

'Aw come on. That could so happen. I mean, I'm a photographer, right?'

Nellie laughed, and ate the last morsel of her sandwich before lying back onto the ground, looking up at the clear blue sky above her.

_'Guys! Let's make a bucket list!' _

_Nellie and Blake looked up at Shanna, whose head had appeared through the entrance of Blake's tree house. They put their books away, both slightly annoyed, so that they could listen to her suggestion. Trust Shanna to always come up with the weirdest ideas. _

_'So all we do is write down a list of things that we want to do before we die, and then, when we do them, we get to cross them off.' She explained, sitting next to the two of them. 'The goal is to do everything that's on your list before you kick the bucket. Come on! Blake you go get the paper, and Nellie you go get the pens.' _

_Nellie and Blake looked at each other, eyebrows raised, and sighed before following Shanna's commands. _

_And a few minutes later, they were all back in the tree house, Nellie and Blake listening to Shanna's instructions. _

_'Ok, so we're going to write twenty things we really want to do, like for example, Nellie, one of the things on your list is obviously going to be 'go see the Grand Canyon'. Got it? Ok, let's get cracking.' _

_So the three twelve-year-olds set off to work, thinking about what they should put on their list, scribbling away on their piece of paper. Shanna, having already thought this through, finished first, and allowed herself a peek at her friend's lists. She rolled her eyes as she saw Blake's. 'Blake, the things on your list have to be realistic. I know you love Spiderman, but that's never going to happen.' _

_He frowned at her, obviously offended, before reaching out to take a look at what she had written. 'You wrote ''become the lead singer of the Pussycat Dolls''.' He laughed before giving the piece of paper back to her. _

_'A girl is allowed to dream. Anyways, it's the only thing that's slightly unrealistic on my list. Something I can't say about yours.' She said, motioning towards his paper. _

_Blake ignored her remark and turned to Nellie. 'What about you Nells? Show us your list.' Both him and Shanna moved up to her, trying to get a peek at the sheet she was desperately trying to hide. She quickly folded it and put it in her pocket, but not before Shanna noticed wish number 2, ''kiss Blake''. Shanna giggled softly; Nellie had informed her about her crush on Blake the week before. _

_'Wait, did number 17 say ''marry a Backstreet boy''?' Blake asked laughingly, who had also managed to catch a glimpse. _

_'Yes.' She admitted, a slight tint of red on her cheeks, relieved that he hadn't seen the second item on her list. 'Among other things. Like ''work as a photographer'' and like Shanna said, ''visit the Grand Canyon''.'_

She could now check the latter off her list, leaving only two unmarked, number 2 and number 17.

'Watcha thinking about?'

Blake's voice snapped her out of her trance, and she turned her head to notice that he was now laying down besides her, their faces at very close proximity.

_Maybe we could also cross number 2 out? _

She nearly let out a gasp at her brain's contemplation and felt her cheeks burn up at the thought of his lips on hers before answering, 'Oh, nothing much.' She quickly sat up, picking up her camera in the process 'Just that I should get started with the pictures before we have to go.'

**A.N.: Hey guys :D So I've decided to make the event american football related, so don't expect much, because i know NOTHING about it. Once again, thank you so much for the reviews, they are much appreciated :D **


	11. Chapter 11: The Arizona Rattlers

Chapter 11

** Nellie's P.O.V**

'So how long is this event going to be?' Nellie questioned Blake, who was driving the blue Ford fiesta they had rented.

'Well, first we have the talks, which is going to take about and hour, and then there's the charity game, and that's going to be at least three hours.' There was obvious excitement in his voice.

But Nellie didn't share his opinion 'Three hours? Are you serious? We're just going to sit there and watch men run around with a ball for three whole hours?'

'It could last way more than three hours.' Blake teased, making Nellie groan, before continuing. 'And anyways, arena football is such a cool sport. I mean, it's not as cool as proper football, but come on, we're going to be watching the current league champions!' He could barely contain his enthusiasm in his voice.

Nellie laughed at his anticipation. 'Someone's excited.'

'You can't imagine. I'm stoked. The Rattlers have won 7 division titles and 3 championships! They're like arena football royalty!'

'Look at who's rattling out the fact and figures this time.' Blake sent her a dark look, which only made her giggle even more.

Blake had always been a sports junkie, and was utterly and completely obsessed with football. Even when he was the tiny guy Nellie had gotten to know, he breathed everything that was sports. His consuming passion for it sometimes annoyed her and Shanna, and they had always teased him relentlessly about it, but it was also what made him Blake, and they had loved him for it.

'What kind of pictures does Keith want us to take?' asked Nellie, as they approached the US Airways Center, the home arena of the Arizona Rattlers.

'Mainly pictures of the players in action, the coach, and the fans. You know, the usual for those kind of sport features.' Blake replied, parking his car in the last available place in the already crowded parking lot.

They got out of the car, and headed towards the arena, cameras at the ready.

* * *

Nellie had just finished taking pictures of the two linebackers of the team, when there was an announcement.

'Ladies and gentlemen, the game should be starting shortly, please make way to your seats.'

She looked around the arena, trying to spot Blake amongst the number of people that were moving around on the field, trying to get to their seats, . She finally caught sight of him in between the flurry of the green, gold and white colours of the rattlers, talking to the team quarterback. She walked towards them, smiling as she noticed how animated Blake looked.

'Hey, I'm sorry to intervene, but we should get moving.' She said, interrupting their conversation.

'It's okay, we were just finishing.' Said the quarterback. 'Blake, it was nice meeting you.' He shook Blake's hand, leaving him utterly speechless, before whispering something into his ear, making him blush. Blake just nodded in response, and watched him leave, before turning to Nellie.

'Oh my God, do you know who that is? That was Nick Davila! Nick Davila! I bet you have no idea who he is, do you?' He sighed when Nellie shook her head. 'How could you not? He is a genius on that field. He won the title for the rattlers. He…'

Nellie just laughed, took his hand, and pulled him behind her, ignoring his babbling. When they were finally sat down, he was still rambling on about the illustrious quarterback.

'Breathe Blake. You need some of that for the game.' She teased. 'So how do you want to do this? Do we take all the pictures now, or later?'

Blake regained some of his composure before answering. 'I think that we should take all the pictures at the end, at the height of the game. That's when were going to get some good shots.'

Nellie followed his advice, and put away her camera.

'So what's going to happen? Could you explain the rules to me?'

Blake looked at Nellie, surprise written all over his face. When they were younger, he had always tried to bring her by the rules, but she had always refused, stating that sport just wasn't her thing.

Nellie noticed his expression 'What? I just thought if I'm going to watch this, I might as well know what's going on.'

Blake grinned at her before explaining the rules to her as the game was taking place on the field.

'… And basically, the team with the most points wins.'

Nellie just nodded along, trying to make some sense out of his account on the game, watching the players run around the center of the arena, getting more confused by the second.

**Blake's P.O.V:**

It was already half time when Blake suggested that they should grab something to eat.

As they made way to the vendor, he realized that he was happy. No, not happy, content. He was content with his life. He was always happy, he figured that life was too short to not be happy, but he hadn't been content with his life in a long time. Even when he had been with his girlfriend, he just felt like something wasn't right. Same with College. Same with High School. To think about it, he hadn't been content since Shanna slapped him at that party. At that party, he knew that their friendship wasn't going to last, even between him and Nellie. He knew that the three Musketeers was bound to end. Since the beginning of freshman year, there had always been that little voice in the back of his head telling him that being a jock was going to ruin their prized friendship. He had tried to ignore it, but at that party, he had had to come to the realization that the little voice was right. And he had to choose. Football or Nellie. To be honest, he hadn't been the one choose, his so-called 'friends' had.

But now, he was feeling good again. He was here at a football match, he met the star quarterback, and last but not least, he was with a girl that he was completely smitten with. There, he said it. He was _smitten _with Nellie Stromberg.

'What do you want?' He asked when they got at the vendor.

Nellie quickly deliberated before answering 'I'll have a hot dog.'

'Ok. Two hot dogs please.' He paid the vendor, and gave Nellie her hot dog.

The got back to their seats in the arena and chatted a while waiting for the game to resume.

'What?' She asked. She was in the middle of talking about something when she noticed that Blake was staring at something on her face whilst she had been talking.

'You've got some mustard on your nose.' He grinned. He looked her in the eyes and wiped the sauce away with his thumb. 'There, all gone.' His grin faded away when he realized how close they were to each other. He felt his heart rate going faster, as he looked into her beautiful golden-brown eyes.

He wanted to lean in and kiss her, but he couldn't. She was going out with that Michael guy. It wasn't right. _I can't do this. _

So he tried to find a way out of the situation.

'A staring contest Stromberg?' Blake joked, feeling the mood lighten almost instantly. 'You know I never lose at those.'

She laughed. He sighed a breath of relief, glad that the tension was gone.

They were staring at each other, trying to make each other laugh by making faces, when Blake saw something in the corner of his eye.

_Oh no. _He didn't know whether to be worried or be thrilled. He decided on the latter and started to grin. _Nellie is going to love this!_

'You lose.' He heard Nellie say, but to be honest he didn't care. He was laughing at her oblivion.

'What?' she asked once again, turning around to see what Blake was laughing at. She gasped. They were both on the big plasma screen at the centre of the arena, getting filmed by the kiss cam.

He thought about what he should do, knowing fully well that Nellie was just going to sit there, gaping like a fish out of water, when he suddenly remembered something Abraham, his friend from college, had always said to him. 'Go big or go home.'

He decided that he should go big.

So he pulled her chin up and kissed her.

**A.N.: Heyyy :) ok, so I know this is definitively one of my worst chapters, and I'm sorry. It's also really cheesy. I just had no idea how to continue the story. And I figured that I would use arena football instead of american football since they are the current champions, whereas the cardinals haven't won a championship in more than 50 years. And I'm sure that some of the stuff I wrote may not be true, for example with Nick Davila (well maybe he is great.), but it's just for the purpose of the story :). Thank you so much for all the great reviews :D **


	12. Chapter 12: Cross Number 2 off my list

Chapter 12

And he was kissing her.

In front of hundreds of people, who were cheering and cat calling at them. And as she felt his soft lips on hers, she knew what Shanna's books were talking about. She felt the fireworks everywhere, and for a moment there, she completely forgot the deafening roar of the crowd, and it felt like it was just the two of them.

_If only Michael had kissed me like that. Michael! _

How could she forget? She quickly pushed herself away from Blake, confused as to why she had failed to remember that she was supposed to be with Michael. She looked up at Blake, who was just staring at her with a confused look on his face, probably wondering why she had suddenly pulled away when just a moment before she had been kissing him back. He had kissed her, and he knew she was with someone else. And before she knew what happened, she slapped him across the face.

Blake clutched his sore cheek and looked at her with a pained expression on his face. 'What did you do that for?' He asked, the hurt was audible in his voice.

'I- I don't know.' She mumbled, feeling the stinging sensation of tears forming in her eyes. She hadn't meant to hurt him. At a loss of words and utterly and completely confused, she didn't know what else to do but stand up and run up the stairs towards the exit of the arena.

As she got outside, she leaned against a fence that was secluded away from the noisy crowd, and quickly wiped away any stray tears before pulling her phone out of her pocket and dialing her best friends number.

'Shanna?' She said, when her friend picked up her phone.

'Nell? Sweetie? What is going on?' Shanna's distinctive southern drawl immediately made Nellie feel a bit better. She knew that she would always have her by her side, no matter what.

'Shan, he- he kissed me.' Nellie stumbled over the words, still in shock over the recent events. 'There was a kiss cam, and- and he just grabbed me and-'

'Shh, sweetie, calm down.' Shanna said with a reassuring voice. 'Just take a deep breath and calm down.'

Nellie did as Shanna instructed, and felt herself relax a bit, but all her composure disappeared once again when she heard Shanna's question.

'How did it feel?'

'What?'

'That kiss. I mean, you've wanted to kiss him all through middle school.' She said, a teasing tone in her voice. 'I just would like to know how it feels like to kiss Blake Edwards.'

'I felt nothing.' Nellie muttered down the phone. She knew she was a terrible liar, but she hoped that if she spoke quietly, maybe Shanna wouldn't notice.

But she knew it hadn't worked when she heard her gasp 'Oh my Godness Nell! You so felt something!' Nellie tried to protest, but was interrupted by her friend. 'Don't lie to me, Nell! I've been friends with you since pre school, and even if you try to talk quietly under your breath, I know when you're not telling the truth.'

'Fine, I felt something.' She admitted, and sighed when she heard Shanna's squeal. 'I don't get why you're so excited. I like Michael, remember?'

'You don't get it do you? This is just like what happens in books and movies. There's a girl, and she goes out with a guy, but then realizes she has feelings for the other guy. It's too cute!'

Nellie rolled her eyes before saying. 'Shanna, I think you should stop with all those romance novels. They're obviously getting to your head.'

'Nell, did you feel anything when Michael kissed you? No. Did you feel anything when Blake kissed you? Yes. Even I can put two and two together here.'

Nellie rolled her eyes once more. 'Shan, I don't have any feelings for Blake.'

She heard Shanna laugh on the other end. 'Sure Nell, whatever you say. If it makes you feel any better, you can cross number two off your list.'

Nellie smiled at the thought. 'Now I only have to marry a Backstreet Boy.' She joked.

'Thanks Shan. Even though you haven't been the biggest of help-' She laughed as she heard a huff of indignation down the line '- I feel much better now. I've gotta go now.'

'I'm glad. Bye Nell. See ya tomorrow.'

'Bye.'

She pressed the end call button and put her phone away. She sighed before making her way back to the stadium.

As she got back, she noticed that Blake had already set out all of their equipment and was snapping away.

'Hey.' She said as she walked up to him.

He turned away from his camera and looked down at her. 'Hey.'

'I'm really sorry about before. I shouldn't have-'

'Don't worry about it.' He interrupted 'It's my fault really. I shouldn't have kissed you like that.' He paused, and a mischievous grin appeared on his face 'Even though, you know, everybody loved it. They were going crazy.'

He laughed as she mock punched his arm.

'Ow. And what are you doing? I didn't bring you so you could just stand there. We've got work to do. Here.' He grinned as he passed her her camera. As she grabbed to reach it, their fingers touched, and she felt a surge of electricity pass through her. She quickly pulled her fingers away, feeling her cheeks turning red. Was Shanna right? Could she have feelings for him? She thought back at what Shanna had said. It wasn't impossible. She had felt something when they had kissed, and that must've meant something. Maybe that crush she had for him when they were younger never really went away. That explained why she hadn't gone out with anybody all through high school and college. A few people had asked her, but she had always refused. At the time, she always said it was because she didn't want to have any distractions from schoolwork, but now she knew it was because deep down inside, she had been aware that she still wasn't over Blake, that she was still hurting over him. She had thought that she had gotten over him when she cut her hair. She sighed as she took a picture of two fans that were screaming, waving a banner in support of the Rattlers.

**_I watch it as it falls _**

**_I just want to lose it all_**

**_Every strand you ever touched_**

_She looked herself in the mirror, her young, 14-year old face staring back at her, scissors in hand. With her other hand, she felt the ends of her long black hair, wondering whether she should or shouldn't cut it. _

**_Weightlessness is such a relied_**

**_Want to feel the cold on my neck, _**

**_Just want to ever forget you ever kissed me there. _**

_He had always said that he preferred long. That was his favorite thing about her. Her hair. They used to sit in his tree house, and just read, and sometimes they would talk. And when they talked, he would always sit by her side and fiddle with the ends of her hair. There had never been any awkwardness about it; it was just a natural thing between them. But she never could stop her heartbeat from speeding up every time he did it. _

**_I watch it as it falls _**

**_I just want to lose it all_**

**_Every strand you ever touched_**

**_Weightlessness is such a relied_**

**_Want to feel the cold on my neck, _**

**_Just want to ever forget you ever kissed me there. _**

_And now he wouldn't even talk to her. Every time they crossed each other in the hallways, he would just turn his gaze away, pretending that their friendship had never existed. Once, their English teacher had paired them up for an assignment. He didn't talk to her the entire time, he completely ignored her, and she ended up doing all the work. He didn't say a single word, after all those years in which they had relentlessly talked to each other. There had always been a story to tell, or a joke to crack or a song to sing._

**_I don't feel beautiful anymore_**

**_Don't know what from _**

**_Was it the cause of effect _**

**_Or is it none, of the above_**

**_What I have left can't hide me anymore_**

**_Almost nothing left_**

_She watched as she saw a tear roll down the cheek of her reflection. She never wanted to feel like this ever again. Hurt. She didn't want to remember how he liked her hair. So she held out a strand, and cut it. She followed the strand with her gaze as it fell into the sink. She looked back up at her reflection, and repeated the action, watching as another strand fell into the sink. _

**_I can feel it in my bones _**

**_But I don't feel like I am home_**

**_Cause home is in your arms_**

**_And I don't know where you are_**

**_I can look in the mirror_**

**_I can imagine you here_**

**_And sing a sad song or two_**

**_Or three or four_**

**_But I don't feel beautiful anymore_**

_She put her scissors down, and saw the mass of dark hair in her sink. It felt good. She looked up at her reflection, and saw that her long hair was now gone, leaving place to a short, messy haircut. It was different, and she liked it. It was convenient, and manageable. It would be much easier to wash the slushies out now. It would be much easier to forget now. _

**_I don't feel beautiful anymore_**

**_Don't know what from _**

**_Was it the cause of effect _**

**_Or is it none, of the above_**

**_What I have left can't hide me anymore_**

**_Almost nothing left_**

_But it wasn't. She went to school the next day, head held high. She walked down the corridors, and there he was. He was staring at her, his eyes a reflection of shock and pain. She knew that he knew why she had done it. She stared right back at him, conveying all the anger and hurt she could in her gaze. She wanted him to feel her suffering. He bent his head down in shame, and walked away. Later that day, she saw him once again, coming out of the boy's toilets, his eyes red and sore. He had been crying. Good, she thought. Little did she know that it only hurt her even more in the inside. _

**_I've stopped writing in pencil_**

**_Started writing on stone_**

**_Want to make sure what I think is known _**

**_Don't want anything to wash it out_**

**_Moses sure knew what he was talking about_**

**_And like those who worship gold I won't feel it's worth it to hold, on_**

**_Maybe it will be 40 days_**

**_Maybe it will be 40 nights_**

**_But eventually someones gonna come down the mountain_**

**_And tell me everything's gonna be alright _**

**_I won't feel lost anymore_**

**_I won't feel hurt anymore_**

**_I'll feel my heart once more_**

**_I'll feel beautiful_**

She muttered the lyrics she had written back then under her breath, lightly touching some strands of her short hair. Maybe Blake, the one who hurt her in the first place, was going to be the one that was going to heal her too. She looked over to where he was standing, taking pictures of the players on the field, his hair softly falling onto his forehead. She sighed, focusing back onto her camera, taking a shot of two linebackers. Let's say that she did want to be with him, and that he felt the same, how would she know that she wasn't going to get hurt once more? He did it once, he could do it again. She didn't want to go through all of that one more time. She looked back at him. He was studying his shot on the camera, smiling at the result. Before she could look away, he had noticed her gaze, and looked up at her with a smile on his lips. She smiled back before turning away, feeling the blush creep up onto her cheeks. She thought about it once more, faced with a problem that wasn't going to be easy to resolve.

**A.N.: Hii :) This chapter is longer than usual :D yay. I felt kind of bad for leaving you with a cliffhanger. I don't really know how I feel about this one :/ oh well. The song is 'Left' by the one and only Nellie Veitenheimer :D Also shout out to Klaine-Angel504 for her idea :) ! I love your reviews guys :D thank you! **


	13. Chapter 13: Green Apples

Chapter 13

After those two days in Arizona, everything went back to normal, except that now, Nellie had developed brand new feelings for Blake. Maybe they weren't brand new. Maybe she hadn't hated him as much as she had wanted all those years. Now she was back at work, arranging meetings for Blake, and sorting out his mail. She had just finished talking to Keith about the pictures they had taken for him. She didn't know whether to be thankful or bitter towards him, since he was the reason why her and Blake went to Phoenix in the first place. Thanks to him, she was now burdened with feelings that made her blush and fidget constantly. But on the other hand, would she have realized that she liked Blake Edwards if she hadn't gone?

_Guess I had to find out sooner or later. And its always better sooner right? _

'Hey. How's it going?'

A deep male voice snapped her out of her thoughts, and she noticed Michael leaning against the office door.

Michael. Another problem that had arisen from that trip. Now she was supposed to break it to him that it was never going to work between them.

_i might as well do it now. It's not like anything interesting is going on in here. _

'Good. Actually can I talk to you for a second?' She sighed

_It's just like taking off a plaster. You just have to close your eyes and do it. _

She tugged him by the sleeve and led him towards the photocopying room. She instantly regretted choosing that room as a place to talk as Michael moved towards her, looking as if he were about to kiss her. She quickly rebuked him, knowing that she had mislead him, taking him here: the photocopying room was well known throughout the building for the numerous hook ups that took place there. He probably must've just thought that she wanted a breather from work.

'Look, I'm here to _talk_ talk.' She took in a deep breath before continuing. ' As much as you are the sweetest guy I've ever met, I don't think that this' she pointed towards him and back to her ' is going to work.'

She winced slightly, worried about his reaction. Was he going to loose his temper? Or was he going to mope and give her the silent treatment?

But instead he just nodded his head, as if he knew all along that this was going to happen.

'I should've known.' He said, making Nellie wonder what he was talking about. 'You're in love with Edwards right? I'm so stupid. I mean the way you talked about him...' He ran his fingers through his hair, letting out an exasperated sigh.

'Wait, what are you talking about?' Nellie questioned, wondering what on earth he was talking about 'I'm not in... In love with Blake?'

'I think you're the only that doesn't know it. Even the way you say it sounds like a question, as if you know the answer but you just can't face it. Even if you said you hated him, I could see that behind that facade, you had a soft spot for him. I chose to ignore, thinking that it would only pass, but I see now that I was wrong.'

'Look, Michael, I'm so sorry, I don't get what you think there's between me and Blake. But can we just forget about it? And can we be friends? Because even though romantically, we're never going to work, you've still become a very precious friend to me.'

He grinned at her words 'Sure, if you want to. I've gotta go now.'

He was about to leave her in the room, when he turned around and said one last thing 'oh, and if we're going to be friends, I think, as a friend, that you should totally get it on with Edwards.'

He winked at her, leaving her squirming with embarrassment.

She left the photocopying room only to find Blake himself, leaning onto her desk, a green apple in hand.

'So what were you doing in the photocopying room with Michael.' He grinned.

Nellie blushed, knowing fully well what he was suggesting towards.

'It's not what you think. We talked. And we decided that our relationship wasn't going to work.'

Blake suddenly straightened up, clear interest showing on his face.

'Oh yeah? And why is that?' He sounded way to excited.

'We just decided that it wasn't going to go anywhere.' she shrugged nonchalantly. 'What about you, what do you want?'

He didn't usually show up at her desk to ask or tell her about things.

'Well you know my birthday is coming up right?' He said, shrugging it off as if it weren't a big deal, taking a bite into his apple.

'And? I don't think you just came here to tell me that your bday was around the corner. And anyways I know when it is. How could I forget? It's written in your timetable, and as your assistant photographer, I know everything that's on your agenda.'

'Everything?' He asked, smiling. He moved up closer to her, making her blush.

'Everything.' She said in a soft whisper.

To be honest, she didn't want to admit that she knew his birth date by heart and didn't need some agenda to know when it was.

Since they had become friends, she had always organized a surprise birthday party for him, and every year, he had always pretended that he had no idea. After the first two, he did the same for her. It had become some kind of tradition between the two them.

_'So what are you going to do for me this time?'_

_Today was Blake's 14__th__ birthday and they were walking down the road that leads to Blake's house. He knew perfectly well what awaited him in the house. Nellie organized those supposedly 'surprise' parties every year, but every time she did something different with it. Once they had all gone to Six Flags, the other they gone disco roller-skating. Her ideas were always the best, and he couldn't wait to find out what she came up with this year. _

_Nellie laughed at his impatience 'Can you not wait 2 minutes, we're basically there.' She motioned towards his house at the end of the road. _

_Blake smiled and put his arm around his best friend's shoulders, making Nellie's heart flutter slightly 'Do you realize how lucky I am to have you as my best friend?' He looked down at her, and she looked at him, only to find a teasing grin appear on his face. 'I mean, without you, my birthdays would just be really boring.'_

_Nellie punched him in the arm, a mock shocked expression on her face. 'Blake Edwards, how could you? I spend ages planning the perfect day for you, and you say that you're only my friend so that something happens on your birthday. I'm hurt.' _

_She walks off, pretending that he had hurt her feelings. Blake laughed at her antics and caught up with her, putting his arm around her once again. _

_'Aw, I'm sorry Nells. I don't how you put with me.' He said, fiddling around with a strand of her hair. 'You must really like me or something.' He teased once more, sticking his tongue out at her. _

_She laughed along with him, ignoring the heavy pounding of her heart in her chest 'Or something.' She replied. _

_When they entered his house, Blake had pretended, after many years of practice, that he had not suspected a thing when a crowd of people screamed 'Surprise!', and acted shocked. As everybody congratulated him, Nellie revealed to him that they were going to go paragliding for the day. It was the best birthday present he could wish for, and he knew that Nellie had chosen it because it was one of the things on his bucket list. When Nellie had been choosing what do for his birthday, she had first been adamant about the idea, being slightly scared of heights, but decided that Blake's happiness came before that. They drove to Chebanse, and arrived at the paragliding center. As the got equipped, Nellie could feel the fear rising in her as she tightened one of her straps. Blake must've noticed since he came up to her and gave her a big bear hug. _

_'Hey, don't worry about it. Once you'll up there, I bet you're going to feel amazing.'_

_He said, kissing her on the forehead, before leaving her to get geared with his own equipment. _

_And he was right. Once she was up, she felt invincible, as if nothing could touch her. She felt free, feeling the breeze tousling her hair that peeked through her helmet. She stretched out her arms, feeling the wind pass through her fingertips. _

She smiled as she reminiscences the happy memory, losing herself in Blake's eyes.

'You were thinking of the paragliding, weren't you?' He grinned at her, as if he could see her thoughts in her eyes. She looked away, setting herself behind her desk. She nodded slightly, not liking that even after all those years of not being friends, he could still read her like a book. 'So what are you doing here?' She asked once again.

'Just wanted to tell you that you and Shanna are invited to my party.' He said, taking another bite from the apple. He stood there, looking at her and munching on his apple. It took Nellie a few moments to realize that he was waiting for a response from her.

'Oh, yeah sure we'll come.'

'Great. Looking forward to it.' He said, finishing up his apple, and skillfully throwing it into the rubbish bin next to her desk. 'I expect to see you there in your best clothes.' He said, walking back into his office, winking at her.

Nellie groaned, wondering for the second time in two weeks what she was getting herself into, and looking at what had happened the first time, she wasn't especially looking forward to it.

**A.N.: Hey guys :) Nothing interesting this chapter, I know. But next chapter is the party :D so yeah. Thank you so much for all the amazing reviews, I absolutely love them. **


	14. Chapter 14: I Forgive you

Chapter 14

**Shanna's P.O.V**

Shanna didn't know how she felt about this party. Maybe it was because of the last time she had been to one of Blake Edwards's renowned social gatherings, or simply because she just didn't trust him with Nellie's heart. She sighed as she applied some mascara, thinking about how heartbroken Nellie had been after Blake had slushied her for the first time. She remembered how she had received a call in the middle of Geography, and as soon as she had seen the caller I.D., she had immediately left the classroom, hurriedly excusing herself from her teacher as she walked by.

_Shanna fumbled around with her phone as she arrived in the girl's bathroom, hastily pressing the call button. She knew that this couldn't be any good. Nellie never called her during class, and the last time she did, her grandma had died, and she was in desperate need of consolation. So this definitely couldn't be good news. _

_'What's wrong?' She asked. She could hear Nellie crying on the other end. _

_'It's Blake.' Shanna sighed. She knew it. She knew that he would just end up being bad news. Ever since he came back from Texas, everything had changed between the three of them. He started canceling every time they tried to meet up, saying that he had to go to another practice. He talked to them less and less, barely making any time to see them. Nellie didn't notice as much since she saw him everyday at school, and besides, she was too much in love to even care. But Shanna noticed. And at that party, she told him. She was glad she had slapped him, hoping that he would get a wake up call, but it seemed that he had just forgotten all about it, and managed to do something worse._

_'What did he do this time?' She questioned. _

_'He… he slushied me.' Shanna gasped, watching her reflection in the bathroom mirror as she opened her mouth in surprise. She hadn't expected that. Blake, even though he hadn't really been the nicest recently, was the kindest person she knew. He wouldn't hurt a fly. Sure, he was a bit of a pushover, and he would let the jocks slushy Nellie, too scared to stop them, but she would never have thought that he would be the one hurting anybody, even less his best friend. _

_'And he wasn't even sorry.' Nellie sniffled. Shanna could hear the hurt in her friend's voice, finally realizing how much of a blow this must've been to her. She had always been the one to stand up for Blake, always challenging the people who said anything bad about him, even if it meant that she would get bullied. She didn't care, because she was protecting her friend. And now this friend, whom she had worked so hard to defend, was bullying her. It didn't help that she was in love with him. _

_'Look, sweetie, I'm sure there must be some reasonable explanation for this. Maybe he was pressured into doing it. You know that he isn't as strong as you.' Shanna only partly believed in what she was saying; even though she was pretty sure that the jocks had made him do it, she still wanted to tell Nellie to stop being friends with him, that it would only hurt her even more. But Shanna was surprised by Nellie's strong reply. _

_'No Shan, you were right the whole time. He is just a mean jock. The Blake I knew is gone.' _

_'Nell, you can't say that-'_

_'No, he is gone. If the old Blake was still there, he would at least have excused himself.' _

_Shanna listened regretfully at Nellie's words. This was Nellie's coping mechanism. She was trying to be strong, pretending that she wasn't hurt, and was just putting up a façade._

_'Nell, please. I know you're hurt, but please don't close off like you did when your sister died.'_

_But it was already too late. Nellie had already hung up. Shanna tried to help her, visiting her every day after school, but Nellie simply locked herself up in her room, not listening to anybody. She tried to send her texts and e-mails, but they were all ignored. After weeks of trying to reach up to her, she gave up, not knowing what to do. She had even tried to reason with Blake, but he wouldn't see her either, saying that the damage was already done, and that there wasn't anything he could do about it. And then one day, Nellie showed up at her doorstep, asking if she wanted to go out for some ice cream. Shanna had barely recognized her as she answered the door. Her long hair was gone, leaving place to a short pixie haircut. She didn't know whether to be happy or sad. She knew why Nellie had done it –Blake had always insisted on how beautiful her hair was- and felt sorry for her, knowing that she had done it because she was trying to forget all the suffering and pain she had felt, yet she couldn't help but rejoice in finding her best friend once again. _

But she had been wrong, thought Shanna as she finished up the final touches of her make-up. That Nellie had only been a ghost version of the old happy and positive Nellie that she grew up with. That Nellie was a hurt and broken replica that was trying to find her way back into the world. And know that her cracks were nearly healed up, Shanna was just scared that they would break once again. She pushed away all the negative thoughts from her mind and made her way to the living room, only to find a waiting Nellie.

'Finally.' Her friend exclaimed. 'What were you doing in there? It's not like we're going to some royal ball.'

'Well, at least I made an effort.' She teased back, eyeing her friend's casual outfit made up of a simple white tank top and jeans.

Nellie simply rolled her eyes in response and tugged on her best friend's arm. 'Let's go. We're going to be late.'

**Blake's P.O.V**

'You look restless.'

Blake broke from his trance as he looked at Aylin, one of his closest friends from college.

'I'm just looking forward to seeing someone.'

He watched the Turkish girl seat herself next to him on the couch. She arched one of her eyebrows at him.

'Already found yourself a girl Edwards? I know some people who are going to be disappointed.' She grinned, looking at a group of women dancing, clad in their most revealing outfits, and trying their hardest to catch Blake's eye. He grinned back at her. Even though he had done his best to stop the news of his breakup from spreading, they had inevitably circulated around the office, judging by the amount of girls who had come, doing their best to attract his attention.

'So tell me about her.' She prompted.

'Well, I've known her since middle school, but long story short I kind of screwed up our friendship in High School, and we haven't talked since. And now she is my employee.' He sighed. He was surprised at hearing the girl laugh.

'Only that kind of twisted up shit could happen to you Edwards.' She explained. 'So what are you going to do about it?'

'I think I'm going to tell her. That I like her.' He said hesitantly, looking up at his friend for approval. She simply nodded before changing the topic of the conversation. They were in the middle of a very animated discussion, when he noticed Shanna and Nellie enter the room. He noticed that she was wearing the most simple of outfits, yet somehow, she was still the most beautiful girl in the room.

'That's her.' He quickly whispered to Aylin, before making way to meet the two girls.

'Happy Birthday!' He heard Shanna say, before she gave him a quick hug. He then turned to Nellie, who just mumbled a happy birthday before clumsily hugging him. He wanted to hold on and feel the sensation of her warm body against his, but he reluctantly let go after a few seconds, not wanting to make the situation awkward.

'So are you going to introduce me?' He heard Aylin say next to him. She must've followed him as he went up to say hello.

'Oh sorry. Aylin, this is Shanna and Nellie, and girls, this is Aylin, one of my friends from college.'

'You mean your best friend. And your only friend for the matter.' She teased.

'Come on, we both know that that isn't true. If it weren't for me, you never could've sneaked out and go to parties.' He teased back, grinning as he remembered how they always snuck out from their freshmen dorms, trying their best to avoid Aylin's body guard, imposed by her strict Muslim parents, to go to clubs.

He turned back to Nellie, wanting to ask her if he could speak privately with her, only to find Shanna looking at him, disappointment and contempt clear on her face. He looked around, and saw a flash of Nellie's short hair before it disappeared, seemingly making way towards the exit.

'Excuse me.' He left the two newly acquainted girls to follow the third. He caught up with her as she opened his front door to leave. He quickly put himself in-between her and the door, stopping her from going anywhere.

'Hey, what's wrong?' he asked, trying to catch the girl's eye, noticing a tear slipping down her cheek. She tried to fight him off, trying to find an escape route, but he just held her still. 'Tell me.' He demanded softly.

She looked up at him, her watery eyes glaring at him accusingly.

'You're such a jerk. Playing mind tricks with me, inviting me here, and then you just go around and flirt with this girl-' He interrupted her by hugging her. He laced his arms around her, resting his chin atop of her hair. He delicately touched a strand of her hair at the nape of her neck.

'You're jealous.' It wasn't a question. It was a statement. Even after all these years, he still knew her well enough to notice when she was hurt. He could hear her grumble in protest, but he silenced her by hugging her tighter against his chest. 'You're jealous.' He repeated once again, savoring the word. He smiled, pushing her away and looking her into the eyes. 'Nell, Aylin is just a friend. We tease each other, that's the way our friendship goes. Besides, she's got Charlie.' He couldn't help but chuckle as he saw her smile with relief. 'And I know what you're thinking. You're thinking that I'm just going to hurt you again.' She started to open her mouth to protest, but he stopped her by putting a finger on her lips. 'Let me finish. I'm not going to hurt you. This time, I'm going to make it right. I'm not going to let you go. I'm not going to mess up agsain. And I am so sorry that I did. That never should've happened, I should've stood up for you, like you did for me. I'm sorry I was a coward. I just threw all of our friendship away. I'll never forgive myself for all the pain and misery I made you go through. You didn't deserve any of that. You're an amazing person inside and out, who saw the best in me, even though I was just a weedy kid who had no friends. You're beautiful, Nellie Stromberg, and you deserve someone who treats you like you deserve to be treated. I know I didn't treat you well, and just made you suffer, but this time, I'll do everything to protect you. I won't repeat any of the mistakes I did, and I will do everything in my power to make you smile every single day, and make you happy that you chose me.' He finished his speech by kissing her on the forehead. He then looked her into her eyes, awaiting her answer.

'Come on Birthday Boy, time to blow out all the candles on your cake.' Blake was pulled away from Nellie by all his friends, who were all too excited to notice that they had interrupted something.

But he didn't mind. Because somewhere, amidst all the chaos and noise, he heard the faintest of whispers, muttering the three words he had wanted to hear.

'I forgive you.'

**A.N.: Hey guys :) I'd just like to thank penfilly for giving me an idea for this chapter. So shout out to her :D I'm so sad this is nearly over. thank you so much for all the reviews and all your kind words :) Only the epilogue left and then...**


	15. Chapter 15: Epilogue

Chapter 15

Nellie sighed, and flattened out the creases on her dress with the palm of her hands. If only she could do the same with the marks of worry etched on her forehead. She looked around the room, looking for something she could sit on, tired from the already eventful day, and already exhausted from what was coming ahead. As she sat down on a chair in the corner, she sighed once again. She knew that this was supposed to be the happiest day of her life, but she couldn't help but worry. Thoughts of doubt and confusion had been passing through her mind for the past week and even though she loved him, she couldn't help but think that he was going to hurt her again, and that she was throwing herself back into the world of despair and loneliness that she had fought so hard to leave.

There was a quiet tap on the door, making her jump. She turned only to see Blake's head peeping through the entrance. She quickly stood up in shock, attempting in vain to hide herself from him.

'Blake! What are you doing here? You know that it's bad luck for the groom to see the bride before the wedding!'

Blake didn't answer. Instead, he softly closed the door behind him and took a few steps to where she was standing and took her into his arms.

'Shanna told me that you were freaking out.' He said, resting his chin atop her head. 'We could always do this another time, if it's what you want.' The sorrow was thick in his voice.

She instantly felt guilty, knowing that she had been the one to cause that sorrow. She tightened her arms around him, closing the gap between them.

'It's not that. I want to be with you, it's just that-'

'It's just that you're scared that I'll hurt you again.' Blake interrupted. He had always known, much to his despair, that she still hadn't completely forgiven him, and that she was always uncertain about the future if it concerned the two of them. He pushed himself away from her, holding her slight shoulders in his hands, and looked into her eyes. 'We've already been through this.' Nellie looked away, ashamed of her doubtfulness. But Blake simply took her chin and gently turned her head back around. 'Look at me. I won't ever hurt you again. I made my promise, and I'm not going to break it anytime soon. I'm never going to break it. If there is anyway for me to prove it, tell me. I just can't stand to see you hurting. I want to make you my wife, of course, but when you walk down that aisle, I want you to be happy. I want to see you smiling, sure of your decision. I want to see the love and determination in your eyes. Most of all, I want you to trust me. And we can work on that together, and do this some other time when you're ready. I'll wait, because I know that no matter what, I won't leave you. Never. Because I love you. '

He kissed her forehead, and saw tears forming in her eyes. He quickly wiped them away with his thumb, trying to think of a way to make her believe in him.

'I'm sorry.' Sniffled Nellie 'It's just that I'm scared. Of everything. I'm trying to forgive you, and I thought I had. But as the wedding came along, all the memories slowly came back, and I just couldn't stop them. And they're getting the better of me.' She wiped away a stray tear that had found its way onto her cheek. Blake pulled her against him once more, holding her tightly against his chest. But she simply pushed him away.

'I'm not finished.' She looked up at him, all the pain and uncertainty gone from her gaze. 'I may be scared, but I want to do this. I want to be your wife. I want you to be my husband. You may not be a Backstreet Boy, but you're a close second.' Blake smiled at her feeble attempt to lighten up the situation. 'I love you, and no confused or apprehensive thoughts will ever stop me from doing so. I want to go down that aisle, today, and meet you on the other side.'

Blake simply bent down and pushed his lips against hers. Nellie intertwined her arms around his neck, pressing into the kiss, but he pulled away, a grin on his face.

'They'll be more time for this later. I've got to go and get ready, but before I do, I just want to tell you something. I'll mention it in my toast later on for everyone to hear, but I want you to hear the story first.' He chuckled as he saw Nellie's eyes lighten up with curiosity. ' Remember that game in Phoenix? When Nick Davila whispered something to me right when you walked up to us.' She nodded, remembering the day as if it had happened yesterday. 'Yeah well, he saw you coming towards us, and asked me if you were with me. When I nodded, he told me something that I'll never forget. "There are two types of girl in the world. Those you go out with, and those you marry. That girl is blatantly the latter and since you're obviously smitten with the girl, I'd recommend that you make your move, since another guy will most probably have his eye on her. And when you do, take care of her, cherish her, and love her. Make her feel special every day. I did all of the above, and I now am married to the most beautiful woman. Just tell her. " And that's what I'm doing right now.' He said, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear. 'I'm taking care of you. I'm cherishing you. I'm loving you.'

'And you make feel special very day.' She answered, a smile of joy and happiness etched onto her face.

He lifted her chin up with his finger and put his lips onto hers, pulling her into a sweet kiss that made her insides melt. They kept on kissing for a few moments before they settled to simply holding each other, savoring the moment. They got interrupted by Aylin, who barged into the room, pushing the door open loudly behind her as she did so.

'Nellie! The wedding is starting in twenty minutes! And Blake! What are you doing here? Get out!'

Before either could do anything, she had already grabbed Blake's arm and was dragging him towards the door. He quickly kissed Nellie on the cheek before he was pulled out of the room.

Nellie smiled. She was happy. She was happier than she's ever been before. She wanted to this. She wanted to be Blake's wife. All that she said to Blake was nothing but the truth. She smoothed down her dress once again, ready to walk down that aisle and spend the rest of her life by Blake's side.

* * *

A little boy climbed up onto the bed, jumping up and down in attempt to wake the two people up who where lying there peacefully.

'Mum, Dad, wake up!' he tugged at the bed sheets, disrupting his parents sleep. He walked towards his mother, her jet-black hair appearing from underneath the covers.

'Mum, mum. Today's my first day of school! We've got to get ready!'

The woman simply groaned in response, trying to block out any noise by covering her head with her pillow. The man next her chuckled at his wife's behavior and got out of bed.

'Come on Nick! Let mummy sleep, we'll go make breakfast.' He said, lifting the toddler up into his arms, and walking down the stairs, making way to the kitchen.

They were in the middle of cooking pancakes when she walked into kitchen, rubbing her eyes, trying to wake up.

'Morning' She croaked, setting herself down at the kitchen table. Nick immediately brought her a plate of pancakes.

'Here you go mummy. I did them all by myself.' He said happily, sticking out his chest with pride.

'Thank you darling. They look absolutely delicious.' She ruffled his hair before giving him a peck on the cheek. Her husband sat himself next to her, facing a plate that was similarly stacked with pancakes.

'Good Morning.' He greeted, grinning from ear to ear. She always looked so beautiful in the mornings. 'Is Elena awake yet?'

She shook her head in response. 'No she's still sound asleep. For now. Are you taking Nick to school?'

'Nah. Michael's coming over with Ella. He's taking them both.'

'Uncle Michael's taking me to school?' Nick asked them excitedly 'With Ella? And is Aunt Shanna coming too?'

Both his parents laughed at his joy. 'Yes, Uncle Michael and Ella are picking you up. At least you'll have one friend when you start school.' His father answered 'But Aunt Shanna can't come, she has to go to work.' He pinched his son's nose before picking him up and carrying him out of the room. 'Come on champ, let's get you decently dressed for your first day.'

She watched the dark blue Volvo drive out of the driveway through the window, disappearing as it turned onto the street. She felt strong familiars arms wrap around her from the back.

'What are you thinking about?' He asked, resting his chin atop her head.

'Nick. He's growing up so fast. It feels like yesterday when he was just a few days old, barely opening his eyes.' She sighed, turning around and intertwining her arms around his waist, leaning her head against his chest. 'Time just goes by too fast. But you know what?' She asked, lifting her head up to look into her husband's eyes. 'I don't mind, since I get to spend all my time with you.' She smiled as she saw the corners of his mouth tug upwards into a grin.

'I love you Nellie Edwards.'

'And I love you Blake Edwards.'

They moved together, meeting each other's lips. They kissed a kiss that held thanks for the past, love for the present, and promises for the future. They kept on kissing, losing track of time, losing themselves into the moment.

They were interrupted by the sound of crying coming from an upstairs bedroom. Blake rested his forehead against hers, gazing into her eyes. They were happy. They were content. Everything was going perfectly, and he was going to make sure that it was going to stay that way.

The End.

**A.N.: I'm so so so so sorry for the late update. But I have my reasons. 1st of all I had school, and let me tell you, A levels ain't easy :P and 2nd of all...It's the end guys :( I just couldn't come to terms with it. So thank you so much for all the views and all the kind reviews :) I hope you liked the ending. I wanted to stop it at the wedding bit, but I thought that you guys deserved more, especially since i've kept you hanging for so long :)**

**Also I'm thinking about some new stories. One of them is set during the Louis XIV period, in Versailles (Blellie, of course). Tell me what you think. And if you have any ideas of your own, just put them in the reviews or send them to my tumblr (artsygraboid . tumblr . com ). :)**

**And finally, my friend starting reading the story and commented on the amount of grammatical errors. I'm so sorry guys D: haha I'll get them fixed as soon as possible. It's not my fault if I'm foreign :P haha x**


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